News & Updates

In 2023, NICHD continued its commitment to research to understand human development, improve reproductive health, promote women’s health, enhance the lives of children and adolescents, and optimize abilities for all. Highlights include steps toward reducing the global burden of maternal sepsis and establishing a standard treatment for opioid-exposed newborns.

Zebrafish are models for studying early development. Scientists at NICHD published an atlas of early zebrafish development that can serve as resource for other researchers who study development or human conditions and diseases.

As we ring in 2024, we’d like to take a brief look back on our accomplishments during 2023. These activities illustrate the institute’s continued commitment to research and training in its mission areas.

The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.

Researchers at NIH have developed a model of how mitochondria—the energy producers in cells—obtain the essential mineral magnesium through the Mitochondrial RNA Splicing 2 (MRS2) channel.

The properties of neuronal junctions that help form long-term memories and aid in learning are similar between mice and people, according to a new NIH study.

The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.

Catherine Gordon, M.D., M.S., has been appointed clinical director at NICHD. In her new role, she will lead the institute’s intramural clinical research program to improve understanding of the biological, medical, reproductive, and behavioral aspects of typical and atypical human development.

Children with creatine transporter deficiency, a hereditary developmental disorder, have higher levels of three proteins that are also found in people with Alzheimer’s disease, according to a small study by researchers at NIH and other institutions. The higher the level of proteins, the lower the children scored on a test of coping behaviors and skills. These findings may help inform diagnostic approaches for the transporter deficiency disorder.

A microscopy image created by NIH researchers is part of the “Life Magnified” stamp panel issued by the United States Postal Service.

The experimental drug TEMPOL prevents viral replication by targeting the SARS-CoV-2 helicase, in addition to the virus’ replicase, according to a new NICHD study.

Delivery of the gene for neurotrophic factor-α1 directly into the hippocampus of the brain prevents neurodegeneration and memory loss in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease.

The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.

A gel made from the seeds of a South American palm tree entraps SARS-CoV-2 and the protein the virus uses to enter cells, preventing the virus from infecting cells in laboratory cultures, a National Institutes of Health study has found. The findings raise the possibility of future studies to determine if the gel could be incorporated into masks and filters to reduce airborne spread of SARS-CoV-2.

Findings may aid design of targeted drug delivery into the brain and central nervous system.

A research team including NICHD scientists has developed a potential gene therapy for hereditary spastic paraplegia 50, a rare childhood-onset neurodegenerative disorder that leads to developmental delays, cognitive impairment, and eventual paralysis.

Dr. Veronica Gomez-Lobo, director of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology at NICHD, began her career as a clinician focused on caring for underserved populations. Taking advantage of interesting opportunities led her to become involved in medical education, and later, in scientific research.

Cells lining the umbilical vein secrete a newly discovered extracellular vesicle—a tiny, balloon-like structure that influences other cells—suggests a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The findings may have implications for understanding fetal development and may inform strategies to use extracellular vesicles to deliver drugs and other therapies.

Researchers at NIH have discovered that mutations in the gene SPIN4 cause a rare overgrowth disorder in people.